Blue Remembered Hills Scene 13 (Hayleigh & Portia)

Scene 13

 

Scene 13 depicts the interactions between Peter and Donald, as Peter enters the barn where Donald is hiding. Peter is upset and angry, having just lost his fight with John, and therefore is looking to reassert his reputation by bullying someone weaker than him. Donald, on the other hand, is very cautious- watching Peter from his hiding place before greeting him- and is eager to avoid a fight. Due to this, and Peter being larger physically, there is a clear imbalance of power in their relationship.

Donald behaves sycophantically at first, but when the story of the jam jars is introduced, his intelligence makes him equal to Peter. Peter’s liking of materialistic things makes him impressed with Donald, so he starts treating him in a more friendly way. However, he still feels the need to prove his superiority so he threatens to blackmail Donald, saying “You’ll go to gaol, won’t you?” and “What’ll you give I (if he doesn’t tell)?”

He goes on to taunt Donald about his father- “Your dad’s missing, ent he? ...Him’s good as dead, then.” Peter fails to realise the impact this has on Donald, demonstrating his immaturity. But when Donald begins to cry, Peter realises how personal this issue is and feels guilty. This could be the development of his superego. He says, “No. I won’t tell…Just wait till we get hold of them Japs.” This shows that Peter still knows his boundaries and is sometimes considerate of his peers’ emotions.

Because Donald is bullied, he goes to extremes to show his worth as a person, usually through arson. One example of this is him setting fire to the coal shed, which he doesn’t seem to regret- “Oy! It was (good)! It was that!” This indicates that actions seen as excessive by other people are more natural to Donald, so his state of mind is slightly different.

Blue Remembered Hills - Scene 11 (Cameron & Leanne)

Scene 11- ‘The Fight’

The most notable aspect of scene 11 in regards to its significance in the play is that it presents to us the first and only physical fight between any of the characters. The fight itself involves Peter and John, two characters who both like to see themselves as the superior person in their group. As to the actual fight itself, it could be seen as the quest for power as well as a tool used to determine and establish who belong where in the hierarchy. Following on from this the sensitivity of how one reacts or empathises is symbolised through Audrey, more specifically in terms of where her loyalties lie and this is influenced by her perception of power: ‘She stops, watching him recede. Her expression changed horribly.’ This shows that her perception of Peter changes as she realises that Peter is the weaker one of the two and hence he becomes in her eyes less ‘powerful’. Maybe one idea that Potter is trying to present through Audrey is power being symbolic of protection. Audrey ‘supports’, gives her loyalty to the one who possess the most power because of her  own insecurities- she doesn’t want to get bullied herself. In this respect you could also see this scene as an allegory of war, in particular the alliances countries make with one another, mainly for their own self-interest in protection.

 

Blue Remembered Hills - your poll

AS Comms - Accents & power

David Crystal is collecting accents from around the country - you can add yourself to his 'this is how I say potato' map by clicking here.

Blue Remembered Hills - Scene 8 Commentary (by Johanna & Margarita)

Scene 8 is significant because it allows us to perceive the characterisation of the girls: “Shall I bash her in for you?” This shows that Audrey wants to be liked by Angela (who plays leader between the two). This is significant because in the scene, there are no male roles, therefore it's seen as Audrey who is taking on the characteristics of a male: showing aggression, “I will smack her in the mouth as well.” The ‘as well’ shows that she craves the importance of being powerful as her looks do not enable her to gain power or control. She also questions herself and Angela “Shall I? , Shall I?” , almost begging for Angela's approval. Scene 8 is also significant because it allows us to perceive the characterisation of Audrey and Angela in comparison to Peter & Willie. Audrey can be seen as the female equivalent of Peter - relying on physical power, rather than the intelligence and wit of Willie.

AS Comms - Language, self-presentation & power

About a year ago, it was reported by the BBC that one of the Harris Academy schools in South London had decided to ban certain words from being used in classrooms and corridors (see above).

Why do you think the school took this decision?

Click here to listen to Lindsay Johns argue a similar point.

Blue Remembered Hills - what the critics say

Remember that one of the key ways we are being assessed for our coursework is how sensitively and confidently we can think about and use other audience readings of the text. We are critics but we are not the only critics. Our interpretation matters (hugely) but so does an awareness of how other people may interpret the text. These articles below are a good start for you - you will probably end up quoting from some of them in your coursework:

Click here to read 'Potterland' - BRH is commented on in Section 2.

Click here to read a review from The Guardian of a stage version of the drama.

Click here to read a review from the BFI of the original drama.

This next one is a challenging read but there are some really interesting points made about BRH:

Click here to read an extract from Paul Ferguson's book on Potter.

AS Comms - Consolidating theory

AS Lit: Blue Remembered Hills

An extract from 'Potter on Potter', edited by Graham Fuller (faber and faber 1993):

'I was trying to avoid twee and coy responses - 'Ah, look at those children.' If you are seven and the bully is seven, then it's as bad, as terrifying, as being mugged on the street as an adult. If you saw two child actors doing it it could still be terrifying, but there is something that distances you from it, and you say, 'That is what children are like.' Whereas if it's two adults it's so close to what adults actually do do. You just add the fidgets and the constant movement of children.

Blue Remembered Hills was the first time that I couldn't allow myself long speeches - because children don't speak that way - or consecutive thought, in the A-B-C-D-E sense, because children don't think that way. The constant switches of their attention meant that it was the most straightforward, the most apparently naturalistic play I'd done - except that it was played by adults.

The odd thing was that the first few minutes of it were terrifying for me because I wondered if it was going to work! When Colin Welland comes charging out of that field, splashing into a puddle, making aeroplane noises and crashing, it could have been the most embarrassing thing ever. I think most audiences start thinking of the characters as children about five minutes into it. And yet at the same time you're looking at adults, and you know you're looking at adults, so you see the double bounce. Why do people often say, 'I dreamt I was back in school'? It's a version of a nightmare - a recurring one for some people, thought not for me, thank God. But I have often heard it said, and I have often rad that people frequently, when anxious, draem of their schooldays, of their teacher's question, to which they don't know the answer...

So there is such a balance in our own selves. Obviously the child is father to the man, and obviously we carry our childhoods within us. That goes without saying. But to see those little hierachies, that competitiveness, those casual brutalities physically dramatised by adult bodies, that was what I was after - and the sudden tenderness: they cry about the squirrel they've stoned to death, or at least one of them starts crying and the others get embarrassed and they start shuffling about. They deal with their emotions in a very English way, by turning upon the one who causes them discomfort. but the other thing, of course, is that the English are very skilled at repressing emotion, which children aren't, not in quite the same way, and certainly not primary school children. You've just got to look at  a playground.'